15. Julian
JULIAN
I didn’t know Elijah would take the fall for me. I have no idea until it’s too late. I’ve been so focused on what I’m risking and the secret I’m guarding that I never considered what it would cost him. Elijah has always been the strong one, the one who never shows cracks, who takes the hits for the rest of us. But this time, I’m the one to put him in the line of fire.
I was summoned to the family estate to face the consequences of my actions. I thought it would just be a discussion, maybe a quiet reprimand, but nothing prepares me for what I see when I step into my father’s office.
Elijah is already there, kneeling on the floor, his face bruised and bloodied. His shirt is torn, revealing ugly bruises that I know aren’t just from a beating. They’re marks of punishment, of something far worse than I ever imagined. My heart sinks when I see him, and the guilt that hits me almost brings me to my knees.
“Elijah!” I try to go to him, but one of my father’s men holds me back.
I don’t understand. I thought Elijah covered for me, that he hadn’t told anyone about the research I stole from his desk.
He must have accepted the blame for me. He knew what would happen if he didn’t, and decided to protect me.
“Get up.” My father’s voice rings out, cold and commanding.
Elijah slowly rises, his movements stiff with pain. His leg is bent unnaturally, but my brother stands on it anyway. His eyes, usually sharp and full of quiet understanding, are dull, and the exhaustion from the punishment weighs him down.
I can’t look at him. I can’t face the way he sacrificed himself for me, for my mistake.
“You’re lucky Elijah is a weak man.” My father’s voice slices through the silence like a blade. As always, he’s cold and unemotional, but I hear the disappointment lingering in his tone. “I’ve already dealt with him. And now it’s your turn.”
I don’t move. My heart races, but the words won’t come. The guilt weighs on me, suffocating. Elijah did this for me. He accepted the blame, knowing full well what the consequences would be.
Elijah took it all—the bruises, the cuts, the unrelenting physical torture—but it’s the emotional cost that cuts the deepest. I can see it in his eyes. It’s not just the blood on his face. It’s not the bruises on his body. It’s the quiet acceptance in his gaze. He did it because he loves me. Because, despite everything, he’s still my brother, and he’ll always protect me.
I want to scream at him, beg him to stop, to make him understand that he doesn’t have to do this for me. But I know it won’t change anything. Elijah never wanted this for me.
I’m frozen, my body refusing to move, my mind too full of anger and guilt to think clearly. My father’s eyes flick to me and a knowing look crosses his face, but he says nothing. He doesn’t have to. Elijah’s silence speaks volumes.
Elijah finally meets my gaze, his expression unreadable. His lips part as if to say something, but the words never come. Instead, he simply nods, a quiet acceptance in his eyes. I can’t bear it. The pain I see in him tears me apart. I want to say something, to make it right, but I can’t.
“Why?” I whisper, my voice breaking as I finally allow myself to look at him. “You shouldn’t have taken my punishment.”
Elijah’s lips curl into that faint, tired smile that always seems to hide the weight of the world. “I’d do anything for you. You should know that by now.”
I can’t look at him anymore. The guilt is too much. I want to apologize and tell him how much I hate that he had to go through this for me, but the words won’t come. All I can do is stand there, silently watching him as the weight of the moment crashes down on me.
Father lets us have this piece of solace. Until he pushes me against the wall and wraps his callused hands around my throat.
“Listen, boy. I know you’ve been fucking that lawyer. I know what he’s been researching. I have a reputation to uphold. I can’t have word on the street that my son’s gone...soft.” Father spits the word in my face, causing me to flinch. “You have twenty-four hours to make your choice—either that snitch or your fucking family.” He presses his fingers against my airway. “And if it’s anything except the latter...well, you don’t want to know what I’ll do.”
He throws me away, leaving the room. The men guarding the door follow at his heels.
Elijah collapses to the floor, not trying to hide his pain from our father anymore. I rush to him and try my best to pull him off the ground.
“Why did you do that?” I say tightly. “It should have been me.”
His blood soaks my hands, but I can’t tell where it’s coming from.
“Shut up,” he interrupts, his voice a quiet command. “I made the choice. And I’ll do it again if it means protecting you.”
I look at him, a mixture of gratitude and pain flooding my chest. “But why? Why would you do this for me?”
“Because you’re my brother,” he says simply. “And I’ll always protect you, even if it means taking a beating to do it.”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. I can see the toll it’s taken on him, the way it’s changed him, but he doesn’t regret it. Not even a little bit.
“I’ll make this right,” I whisper, my voice barely audible. “I’ll fix this, Elijah. I promise.”
He nods, his expression softening just for a moment. “You better, Julian. Because I can’t keep doing this forever.”
I pull my brother up and drag us both to the infirmary.
The air is thick with tension, heavier than it has ever been before. My father’s ultimatum echoes in my mind like a constant drumbeat: Felix or the family. It shouldn’t be a choice, not after everything that’s happened, but it is. And now, with every passing second, it becomes clearer that the decision I make will change everything…forever.
I know what my father expects of me. He expects my loyalty and obedience, as always. The Greco family has been the entire foundation of my life. But Felix...Felix isn’t a part of this world. He’s everything I’m not supposed to want. He’s a distraction, a weakness. Or at least, that’s how my father sees it.
The problem is, Felix isn’t just someone I want anymore. He’s someone I need . I can’t imagine a future without him, even if it means sacrificing everything. And yet, I can’t escape the gravity of the family I was born into. The weight of my father’s threats, the power he wields—it’s crushing, suffocating.
I don’t want to lose Felix, but I don’t want to lose myself, either.
After a sleepless night of second-guessing every decision, I make up my mind. I can’t risk Felix. Not after what he’s already been through because of me, not after everything we’ve shared.
I have no choice but to protect him.
Felix doesn’t ask questions when I arrive at his door. He doesn’t challenge me when I tell him we have to go. He just follows me, his gaze dark with concern but silent. I can feel the tension between us, the unspoken fear, but there’s a quiet trust in his eyes. He isn’t scared of the danger anymore. He trusts me to keep him safe, even if I’m not sure how I’m going to do it.
We’re now in one of my favorite safe houses, sitting in a small room that smells faintly of disinfectant and cold air—the kind of room you’d expect to find in a place meant for hiding, for laying low when everything outside is about to collapse. It isn’t a place for warmth or comfort. But somehow, with Felix here, it feels different.
I sit next to him on the bed, my hand resting on his thigh as the weight of the situation pushes down on me like a thousand pounds.
“Are you okay?” Felix’s voice is low, almost too soft for the situation, but I can hear his concern. He isn’t asking for reassurance, but because he can see what this is doing to me.
I don’t know how to answer. I’m not okay. I can’t be okay when I’m being forced to choose between the man I love and the family that raised me and shaped me into the person I am.
Love.
That’s new.
“I’m fine,” I say, my voice rough with emotion. I want to say more and explain the war inside my head, but it feels like there’s no point. There’s no explanation for the mess I’ve created, no easy way to undo the damage.
Felix’s fingers curl around mine in a silent promise. The touch grounds me and reminds me that for all the chaos outside, in this moment, we still have each other. I need that now, more than anything.
His lips brush against my ear, warm and soft, sending a shiver down my spine. “You’re not fine, Julian,” he murmurs, his voice low and inviting. “But I’ll be here, whenever you want to talk.”
I close my eyes and try to steady my breath. “I don’t deserve you, Felix,” I whisper.
“You never have,” he replies, his voice filled with dark humor. “But I’m not going anywhere.”
His lips find mine, and I’m helpless against them. He tastes of peppermint and his skin is soft against my callused hands. My heart. My man. He’s everything pure in this world. Untainted.
“Run away with me,” I mumble against his mouth.
He chuckles slightly, his hands slipping beneath my shirt. “Are you asking or telling?”
I push him down against the bed and pull off my shirt in one swift motion. “Telling. I’m not letting you get away.”
Felix’s pupils dilate as he stares at my muscled abdomen. I wonder what he’s thinking. Felix always surprises me when it comes to sex. I never quite know what role I’m going to play until I’m in the thick of it.
Felix’s eyes darken as his fingers smoothly unbutton his shirt. “Show me how much you want to keep me.”
My dick twitches at the challenge. I pull off every inch of Felix’s clothing torturously slow. My mouth kisses down his hip bones, his thighs. My tongue traces along his thick cock. Felix pinches his nipples as his back arches off the bed.
“Julian.” My name on his mouth sounds so sweet that I can’t restrain myself anymore.
I push Felix’s knees up to his chest with one hand while shoving two of my fingers deep into his mouth. He chokes, but then begins to suck on them greedily.
“That’s enough, baby,” I say. Jesus Christ, I’m trying to take things slow and show Felix how much I care for him, but he’s making it too hard for me. I want him screaming from the mixture of pain and pleasure, but I have to stay focused.
He releases my fingers with a pop and I gently press them into his hole.
Felix gasps.
“That feel good?” I graze my lips against his leg.
“Yes, Julian. Yes.” He covers his eyes with his arm.
“Touch yourself, counselor. I want to see you get off.” I’m restraining my own hand from slipping into my joggers.
Felix’s hand grabs onto his dick and starts moving slowly. I spread his knees a little bit so I can spit onto his cock. The added lubricant must have done the trick, because Felix’s hand starts pumping wildly.
“God, baby, you look so good.” I finger his ass as I watch the dirty little show that’s just for me.
“Julian, fuck me,” he whimpers, his cheeks flushed a deep crimson. He tries to pull me closer, but I resist.
“Keep touching yourself, Felix.” My voice is low and gruff.
“But—”
My fingers pause. “Be good,” I say in a warning tone. “You’re mine, remember? So do as I say.”
He nods and licks his hand before going back to touching himself.
I push three fingers into him as a reward.
Felix is breathing heavily, his hole tightening around my fingers greedily. “Ah!”
His seed spills out over his stomach and chest. I snatch his hand, now sticky with his cum, and make him grab my cock. “Coat me.”
He follows my instructions perfectly, gathering his seed from his stomach and lathering it onto me. Once he’s done, I force his knees up again. He’s already spreading his cheeks and panting in anticipation. I slam into him with ease. I throw his legs over my shoulders and pound against him so hard the bed rocks against the wall.
“Fuck, you listen so well, baby.” His cum makes me move in and out of him with ease. My own pleasure builds up within me.
“Jules! God, yes.” Felix writhes underneath me.
“You’re mine. Mine . I’m never letting you go.” Before I know it I’ve pulled out of him, my release coating his chest.
“Fuck!” Blood rushes to my head as Felix continues to milk me of my pleasure. His hand is smooth and gentle against my shaft.
I collapse next to him on the bed, stars flashing in my vision.
Felix hums happily next to me as we gradually sync up our breaths.
I wonder if I should tell him I love him...
But the decision still looms over me like an executioner’s axe: Felix or the family. I know what I want.
But I’m afraid of what I might lose.
And I’m even more afraid of what I might become if I choose wrong.